Ropa Usada (Used Clothing)

There are many Winter Texans in the winter months of each season who roam the Ropa Usada facilities of the Rio Grande Valley in search of the ultimate buy. For pennies per pound, you can search through piles and piles of discarded items. I personally know women and men who make a regular practice of it and the finds they make can be truly amazing. There are discarded wedding and prom dresses, teeshirts of every description, sports clothing such as ski apparel, dress-up clothing for children and the list goes on. I know of a completely finished quilt top that it is guessed to be discarded by uninformed children of some poor woman. It was rescued by some faithful Ropa goers and transformed into a finished quilt and then raffled for charity. Some women rescue baby clothes and restore them to like-new condition and then donate them to birthing centers. All of this is an underknown phenomenon of the Rio Grande Valley. It works best to go with someone who knows the ropes of Ropa but you can go on your own. The people who work in these facilities are glad to answer questions for you. Many offer discounts to Winter Texans so it pays to tell them you are one.
I think the one place who impresses the most, at first sight, is Tres Dimensiones.
You can learn quite a bit from their website as well as how to get there.
https://sites.google.com/view/tresdimensiones/home

Butch and I and Deon and Jim will be glad to answer questions about it. Just ask us

This link is to a style show featuring exclusively found Ropa Usada items.
2018 Ropa Usada Style and Talent Show :
https://magnolianews.blogspot.com/search?q=Ropa+Usada+Style+Show

Trivia Clue for 2/4/2020

Tuesday, February 4th Trivia Clue can be found in the first 5 paragraphs at this site. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angora_wool

FYI

When I started posting to this blog the total page views were just over 9,000 views, somewhere around 9,150, and not had many people looking at it for quite some time. It is reassuring to those of us who post that people are seeing the fruits of our efforts. And in years past on my personal blog, I have found there are people following us who we do not know in person at all. It always surprises me with the things people have learned about us. And that underlines the purpose of this Trophy Gardens blog too. People we do not even know yet are looking at us and the fun we are having and perhaps even as I write planning to visit us sometime in the future. I keep those unknown friends uppermost in my mind as I write. So if you have a picture of an event and think it might convince someone to come share in the fun you can send it to me and I will post it.
So take a peek over to the left of this entry and see where the views are now. Also, feel free to share this blog with friends and family. Being open to the public they can check in on us at any time. Suggest they visit www.trophygardens.blogspot.com and become a follower.

Want to receive Trophy Gardens blog entries in your email? You will not miss anything if you choose this way of seeing it. Here is how to get that done.

While in your browser type in trophygardens.blogspot.com. When you get to the blog scroll to the bottom of the page. There will be a place where you can put your email address. Hit the Submit button and they will ask you to put a check in the box to prove you are a real person. You will then receive an email and if you click on the link in the email it will confirm that it works okay and when each new entry is made you will receive a copy of it in your email. Thanks for being a follower of the blog.

Barb Brooker (keep.movin.on@gmail.com) 

www.brooker3.blogspot.com

Sometimes it doesn't work

Sometimes the links on Facebook to this blog do not work. At times I have been perplexed by this too so I did a bit of looking around on the error message and this is what I found; www.trophygardens.blogspot.com normally uses encryption to protect your information. When Google Chrome tried to connect to www.trophygardens.blogspot.com this time, the website sent back unusual and incorrect credentials. This may happen when an attacker is trying to pretend to be www.trophygardens.blogspot.com, or a Wi-Fi sign-in screen has interrupted the connection. Your information is still secure because Google Chrome stopped the connection before any data was exchanged.

You cannot visit www.trophygardens.blogspot.com right now because the website uses HSTS. Network errors and attacks are usually temporary, so this page will probably work later.

So we can all rest easy as it is a temporary situation.

www.cobainternet.com

My Internet is important to me. I do quite a bit on the Internet as you might imagine if you know me even a little bit. The Internet is my one big indulgence. So when we found out the Wilder Internet was going away and would not be available next season it was time for some investigation. I like to think ahead. So we decided to try Coba since it was a pay-as-you-go system, no contract, start and stop as you need, and 3 levels of availability depending on your expectations and usage. I decided on the middle option. There is some upfront cost but indulgence, remember? Also Butch and I have 8 devices that have a need for wifi usage. No system works well if it is overloaded

Since we have used it now for about 6 weeks we are frequently asked about it. It was a bit rocky in the beginning because we tried to use an outside bin with an electrical plug on the motorhome as a home for the router. The signal was weak this way so we brought it inside the Motorhome by way of the slideout and then it worked perfectly and has ever since. They first tried to mount it on the ladder on the back of the motorhome but could not obtain line-of-site to the antenna so it now resides on a tripod near the front of the motorhome. One other tip. If you have been hooked to the Wilder Internet you will need to go into your settings and delete it because it will argue with the new system. There is a place where it says "Forget it" and that is what you need to do with it. That most likely will not be necessary once that old system is no longer available.
I am not being compensated for this blog entry. I think it would be nice if I were but no, it is not happening.

www.cobainternet.com

Tuesday Trivia Results

We had 5 teams participating and I have noticed that the teams are flexible. People sometimes cannot make it for one reason or another but others step up and fill in, sometimes it is planned and other times it is just serendipity. It is a great way to meet new people and also get to know your friends in a different light. Subjects come up that you otherwise never give any thought to. I have known people who are discussing some of the questions even days later.
First place winners with a score of 138 were Team B&B: Teresa Howard, Sara and Tom Daggett, Deon and Jim Spangler, Kristi Johnston and Margie Baumbach.

2nd place winners with a score of 128 were Team SmartyPants: Dan, Linda and Chris Lang, Heather and Richard Donald, Barb Jacobson, Jean and Bob Williams, and Chris Cronk

Online directory update

We are 25 entries closer to completion. Bev Mcenaney helped with getting folks to fill out the paperwork, one page of simple info and follow up with a quick snapshot. I cannot say it often enough that the info and pictures will not be shared with anyone other than Trophy Garden people. Only people who join in the project will have access to the info it provides. On the info sheet, you do not need to share any more than you are comfortable sharing. The more people who participate in this project the better it will be.
If you already have a photo you like it can be used. Take it to the activity office and Jason will get it scanned. Or I recently snipped one from an online site for directory use with their permission of course. If you have one on your phone you can text it or email it to the activity office. There are many ways to get a suitable photo. And if you do not like the current one it can be swapped out at a later time.
Thanks so much for those who have helped and thanks to those who will step up next Tuesday. We will be taking photos starting at 9:00 before the meeting or you can get one taken after the meeting is finished. It only takes a few seconds.